PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Wednesday sought details from federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government about recent arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan’s nephew Hassaan Niazi allegedly from Abbottabad.

A bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Fazal Subhan fixed Aug 18 for next hearing of a petition challenging alleged illegal detention of Mr Niazi with the direction that the court should be informed in which case he had been arrested.

It was reported in the print and electronic media that Mr Niazi, who had been in hiding since the protests of May 9 and 10, was arrested by the police from Abbottabad on Aug 13.

His father Hafeezullah Niazi had confirmed his arrest on X (formerly Twitter) and had expressed the hope that all legal requirements will be met and the law will not be violated in this case.

Advocate Ahmad Sultan Tareen and Barrister Sarwar Shah appeared for the petitioner and stated that Mr Niazi was taken into custody from Abbottabad and since then his whereabouts were not known.

They stated that his arrest was widely reported in the media.

They added that his family members had approached the police and other law enforcement agencies, but they were reluctant to divulge any information about in which case he had been arrested and where he had been kept.

They said Mr Niazi was a lawyer by profession and his non-production before any court of law was in violation of the Constitution.

An additional attorney and advocate general appeared for the federal and provincial governments and stated that Mr Niazi was arrested in connection with cases registered against him.

Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2023